XJ was a failure :(

[wild foamy]

Got in from work and had a voicemail message on my phone:

"Mr Mortimer, i have the MOT test results for your XJ600 and unfortunately it has failed quite badly"

a quick phone call revealed that it had failed on:

NS fork seal leaking oil

OS fork seal leaking oil

bulge in front tyre caused by partial seperation or failure of its structure

front mudguard free to rub on front tyre (not sure if that is my fender extender or the mudguard itself...)

front mudguard insecure

head bearings have excessive free play

new seals and a new front tyre are on order, i can fabricate a bracket for the front mudguard and possibly tighten up the head bearings as they aren't notchy, one comment they made was that the forks are pitted, but nowhere near as badly as the jawas forks are!, im trying to source a second hand useable pair but i dont know where to look, eBay hasn't really turned up much of interest, are there any other places i can find a used set of forks?

alas, i will have to wait a while longer to play with my new toy

[mike1949]

Look on the bright side. (even a stopped clock is right twice a day)

There are reasons for the dreaded MOT, to make sure your bike is ready and safe for the road.

Get the named problems sorted out, get insurance, and, away you go!!!!!

[wild foamy]

already have insurance, £288 fully comp for a year, compared to £1800 for my car...

but where can i find a good set of used front forks?... ive tried ebay and its just not turning up anything of interest...

[mike1949]

already have insurance, £288 fully comp for a year.

That's brill.

As for for the front forks, you said they are badly pitted, I'm no expert, but can't they be rubbed down with a very fine "wet and dry" paper?

[SgtPepper519]

There is a post near the bottom of this page that suggest using superglue to fill in dents on forks. If you are looking for a quick fix you should check it out. http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/hubb/travel-hints-and-tips/interesting-use-for-superglue-29185

[Vez]

Super glue sounds iffy to me. So does the sanding down as the seal will have to have a smaller internal diameter.

I remember watching a guy fill in the pits on a forklift truck hydraulic ram using a blowtorch and a rod of some metal material ( maybe chrome stick or ally welding rod ) and then sanding the excess off, wish i had asked exactly what now. Point being its possible to repair them and maybe worth looking into.

HTH

Edit: Maybe fitting fork gators and cable tying them on(I believe MOT testers are not allowed to remove anything that is fixed in place )will get it through the MOT.

[drewpy]

or get them re-hard chromed

philpots, try wemoto for new?

[wild foamy]

i think it was JimR who sent me an article about using epoxy resin to fill in the pits and then sanding them down, which may be a possibility if i cant find a replacement set, atleast for a short term fix

[gearboxkart]

some of the ebay sellers are actually breakers yards, just send a msg asking for forks that arent pitted, or put some new fork seals in and also put a set of gators on the forks with jubilee clips top/bottom they dont really tend to bother looking under them for the test unless you use same testing station, just go to a different 1.

[up.yours]

most parts in breakers yards are off damaged bikes,,and not many bikes get damaged by reversing into things,,,repair or new are your main options,,,a good freind told me of the super glue mend a few years back ,he's still riding his 350 jawa today,,,so the proof is in the pudding,good luck mate.

[exkaraokeman-chris]

i like the brightside comment ! Im going to remeber that one ! Still dosent beat when someone is moaning about all their ailments/problems " but everything else is fine" though

[mervin]

foamy

WEMOTO £97 each stantion but having seen some of the forks from breakers it will be peace of mind to have new

mike got some from a breaker for his bandit, lovely forks no pits but when he took apart to do the seals the stantions where like bananas,

[Lew]

Try this, car body filler Isopon or the like let it harden off for a day or two and rub it down with very fine wet&dry emery paper. When you have done that get the Brasso out and give it a good polish, Brasso is slightly abrasive so should remove most of the fine scores. Before you apply the body filler ensure the pitted areas are oil free as the filler will not adhere to the forks. To make sure the area is oil/grease free use an electric contact type cleaner.

Lew